Elam

Mentioned as one of the five sons (Arphaxad, Lud, Aram, and Asshur) of Shem and Faatin. 

One of the sons of Noah.

The name Elam means highland, and may refer to:

* An ancient nation, the Elamite Empire.
* One of eight or nine men in the Old Testament:
o In Genesis 10:22, Elam, a son of Shem and grandson of Noah, appears as the ancestor of the Elamites, see Ezra 4:9.
o In 1 Chronicles 8:24 Elam is a son of Shashak of the tribe of Benjamin.
o In 1 Chronicles 26:3 Elam is the son of Meshelemiah, a Levite of the family of Kohath.
o In Ezra 2:1-2,7 Elam is the ancestor of a family that returned with Zerabbabel.
o In Ezra 2:31 Elam is the ancestor of a family that returned from the Captivity. This is possibly the same man and family as in Ezra 2:1-2,7.
o In Ezra 8:7 Elam is the ancestor of a family that returned with Ezra.
o In Ezra 10:3 Elam is the grandfather of Shechaniah.
o In Nehemiah 10:14 Elam is one of the men who joins Nehemiah in sealing the new covenant.
o In Nehemiah 12:42 Elam is a priest who helps in the rededication of the rebuilt walls of Jerusalem.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.     http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elam

Elam was an ancient name for the region of southwestern Iran known today as Khuzestan. Its capital was Susa, and the territory also contained the kingdom of Anshan, the ancestral home of the Persian conqueror Cyrus the Great. Because Elam had access to the Persian Gulf and lay astride an east-west trade route as well, in historic times it became militarily and economically important, with much commerce and industry.

After a more or less independent cultural existence in the 4th millennium ©, Elam came under the influence of Mesopotamia; subsequently, Elamite civilization borrowed considerably from Sumer. During the 3d millennium ©, Elam was on occasion tributary to powerful Mesopotamian kingdoms, but after 2000 ©, vigorous Elamite kings raided and sometimes controlled extreme southern Mesopotamia.

These raids initiated the so-called Elamite Period, which is divided chronologically into three parts: Early (c.2000-c.1300), Middle (c.1300-1130), and Late (c.1000-640).Of these the Middle Period is most important. This was the era of King Untashgal (c.1265-1245) and his successors, which is notable for spectacular architecture and sculpture known mainly from finds at Choga Zanbil (Dur-Untash). This era of power and prosperity was terminated (1130) by a damaging Babylonian raid, although Elam later reemerged (8th-7th century) as a dangerous enemy of Assyria. Finally succumbing (7th century) to Assyrian battering and the rise of Media, Elam became a province in the Persian empires and their successors.

The Elamites spoke a unique language, not related to any other, ancient or modern, and still not completely understood. Elam was also unusual in having a matriarchal social structure: although the rulers were male, succession to the throne was through the female line, a new king being called the "son of his sister."

Bibliography: Carter, E., and Stolper, M. W., Elam (1984).

2002 Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia